Beijing Platform for Action. Chapter IV. D. Violence Against Women – Paragraph 119
Author(s): Scott Douglas Jacobsen
Publication (Outlet/Website): The Good Men Project
Publication Date (yyyy/mm/dd): 2018/12/17
119. Developing a holistic and multidisciplinary approach to the challenging task of promoting families, communities and States that are free of violence against women is necessary and achievable. Equality, partnership between women and men and respect for human dignity must permeate all stages of the socialization process. Educational systems should promote self-respect, mutual respect, and cooperation between women and men.
Beijing Declaration (1995)
In the work to reduce the levels of violence against women, some of the important factors to keep in mind are 1) the problem is multifaceted and 2) there continues to be work to reduce the level of violence against women on a variety of levels.
If we look into the ways in which there are the multi-causal pathways and thoroughly positively correlated effects throughout the statistics on violence against women, we can see the need to work on promoting families and communities without violence against women, but we also may want to reflect on the ways in which a state where women are “free of violence” is a hard slog.
It is going to take a significant amount of time, but it should not take forever and, technically, could be, in theory, one generation away. Our families, communities, and various states are important actors in the prevention and eventual elimination of violence against women.
The questions become about in what ways and how much. But there are also issues to do with the ways equality can play an important role in this.
In that, as has been noted, women tend to be disproportionately lacking in finances and, thus, economic independence. Most of the structures enforced in societies and reinforced in familial and communal, and even state manufactured, values present a patriarchal family structure.
One in which men are unquestioned and the violence they potentially mete out to women in their lives is something that they simply must take. But there is also the angle of the ways in which various systems and anchors of influence within the society prevent women from being able to freely speak out against the violence inflicted on them, or simply the fear of it.
The notions or the ideals within the global community, or those participating in it, reflect the ideas of respect for human dignity. The argument here is for a ‘permeation’ at “all stages of the socialization process” for human dignity and respect, typically, given mainly to men, especially those with more powerful and influential, and extending those to women as well.
The educational system can be an important force in the increased equality and the mindset concomitant with further “self-respect, mutual respect, an cooperation between women and men” necessary for the future desired by most inherent in a more equal and just societal system.
But, of course, this will not come without difficulties or individuals who may, actively and vociferously, against equality of the sexes based on entrenched forms of privileges and influence, or simply misunderstandings about what these changes imply; however, apart from those ideologues, the basic claims of gender equality are desired by much of the international community and can be seen enshrined within the Sustainable Development Goals.
–(Updated 2018-11-10) One can find similar statements in other documents, conventions, declarations and so on, with the subsequent statements of equality or women’s rights:
- The Universal Declaration of Human Rights in the Preamble, Article 16, and Article 25(2).
- Convention Against Discrimination in Education (1960) in Article 1.
- The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (1966) in Article 3, Article 7, and Article 13.
- International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (1966).
- Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women (1979).
- Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (1984).
- The Declaration on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women and the optional protocol (1993).
- Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action (1995), Five-year review of progress (2000), 10-year review in 2005, the 15-year review in 2010, and the 20-year review in 2015.
- United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325 (2000), and the UN Security Council additional resolutions on women, peace and security: 1820 (2008), 1888 (2009), 1889 (2009), 1960 (2010), 2106 (2013), 2122 (2013), and 2242 (2015).
- Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, especially Women and Children (2000).
- The Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa or the “Maputo Protocol” (2003).
- Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence or the Istanbul Convention (2011) Article 38 and Article 39.
- UN Women’s strategic plan, 2018–2021
- 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
- 2015 agenda with 17 new Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) (169 targets for the end to poverty, combatting inequalities, and so on, by 2030). The SDGs were preceded by the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) from 2000 to 2015.
–Human Rights
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Led by: Scott Douglas JacobsenTo the socio-political Right, a disclaimer; to the socio-political Left, a trigger warning: the subject matter may be disturbing or triggering for some listeners, speakers, or call members. The statistics on international violence against women is disproportionately more than violence against men. In turn, there is violence against women committed by women against women but more often by men against women. It is the statistical difference, which is the basis for the international emphasis on violence against women in multiple spheres rather than localized differences. Wednesday morning, we will speak on violence against women for one hour or so.
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